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The Changing Rates of Crime in the UK

Burglary & household theft

While trespassing and burglary incidents are lower in number than they were at the beginning of this ten-year period, it is unclear as to whether this issue will improve, get worse or level out.

However, a recent ten per cent upsurge in 2010/11 proves that people are still claiming for things stolen from their home; it is a crime that people continue to find successful ways of carrying out.

Motor vehicle theft & damage

Since 2001, incidents of theft or damage to a car or van have dropped by a third.

Aside from a slight pick-up in 2008/9 - at the height of the recession - this downward trend has been consistent, perhaps owing to a greater emphasis on road safety, better policing and technology such as speed cameras.

Bicycle theft

Despite remaining at a comparatively low level against other crimes featured on this graph, bicycle theft is not only still a major problem, but a growing one.

While numbers have often fallen after small stints of marked growth, recent peaks in 2008/9 and 2010/11 prove that criminals still see value in bike theft. Given that most bicycles are used and locked up in cities, this statistic will probably likely remain unpredictable.

Theft from the person

Over the space of ten years, the likelihood of a person being mugged has fallen by a quarter - a heartening statistic for anyone, despite an uncharacteristic peak in numbers in 2008/9.

However, more public campaigns stress the need to keep everything safe and out of sight, while schemes such as community support officers have been introduced; the streets of the England and Wales seem to be becoming much safer as a result.

How to Read the Castle Cover Crime Index

The Castle Cover Crime Index highlights the fluctuations in a range of offences across England and Wales over the last ten years, encompassing 2001/02 to 2010/11. Numbers, based on Home Office figures released this year, are derived by multiplying incidence rates by the population estimates for both countries studied.

Burglary and household theft, motor vehicle theft and damage, theft from the person and bicycle theft are all represented by this interactive chart, showing the comparative fortunes of the number of individuals affected by these crimes during each year. While initiatives are constantly being introduced by the government and charities across the UK in order to oppose certain trends, the consistency of each unlawful issue continues to vary from crime to crime.

The most notable rising trend is that of bicycle theft. On the other hand, petrol-powered vehicles are a lot less likely to be subject to an insurance claim than they were ten years ago, as incidents dropped by almost one third in ten years. Burglary, while initially falling, seems to be back on an upsurge while personal theft has dropped by a quarter.